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I found your discussion of the congressman and food stamps to be profoundly depressing, not just because of his stupidity, lack of ability to see that one week and an entire lifetime are not comparable, and complete lack of empathy for those less fortunate than him, but also because I had a strong sense of deja vu.

You see, only a couple of months ago we here in the UK had our own encounter with a rich idiot saying he could do poverty better than the poor. Unfortunately ours was not just some congressman, but a member of the cabinet and the man in charge of the Department of Work and Pensions (aka the person in charge of benefits!). http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/apr/01/iain-duncan-smith-live-benefits

Just what is it with these people? I’ve been lucky in my life; while money has been tight I’ve never had to seriously worry about keeping the lights on and buying food (though I’ve never been able to be reckless either) yet I can (try to) imagine what it would be like if I had to chose between heat or food, or rent or food, or transport or food. I’m grateful that I’ve never had to make those choices but I don’t look down on those unlucky enough to be in the position where those choices are a daily experience. I certainly don’t say that they should be punished for being poor (which is really what this is all about), I say we should try and help those less fortunate than ourselves as should our government. After all, what’s the point of government if not to formalise the contract we make as a society that we are there to help each other and to put into the system so that we may all benefit? When did this idea that we should kick someone when they’re down take root again?

In Victorian times we had poor houses, where the poor and destitute were sent. To make sure that people wouldn’t take state aid unless they were in the direst of straits the poor houses were made to be the worst place you could imagine. Families were split up, food was meagre, rules were harsh and people would kill themselves rather than be sent there. For most of us the poor houses are a stain on our conscious and a reminder of our cruel past, but for these politicians poor houses seem to be the ultimate goal.

I’m sorry for the length of this comment but it horrifies me that as two countries that purport to be shining beacons of democracy and hope we can treat our own people with such contempt. It seems like we are in competition to see who can plumb the deepest depths the quickest. I don’t know which country will win, I just know we are all losing.

Yay shout out to atheist vegetarians!
It’s nice to see some love,
You won’t believe how much hate I get as a vegetarian, atheist, conscientious objector, bi-sexual, and a racial minority living in the red-meat bible belt.